Nominations for the51st Annual Saturn Awardswere announced on August 05, 2025, in Los Angeles, with James Cameron’sAvatar: The Way of Watersecuring a record-breaking 12 nominations on the film side of things, whileStar Trekleads the charge in television, with bothStar Trek: Strange New WorldsandStar Trek: Picardearning numerous nominations.
Taking place on July 04, 2025, the 51st Annual Saturn Award nominees for feature films includeOppenheimerwith an impressive 11 nominations, including one forBest Thriller Film,Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinywith nine nominations with one being for Best Fantasy Film, as well asBarbiewith eight nods, andGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3with seven nominations, including Best Superhero Film. Horror films nominated includeEvil Dead Rise,Insidious: The Red Door, andTalk to Me.
James Cameron’s 12 nominations for the visually stunningAvatar: The Way of Watersurpasses Cameron’s own record set back in 2010, when his groundbreaking originalAvatarfilm received 10 nominations. The film is a contender for Best Science Fiction Film, Best Actor in a Film (Sam Worthington), Best Actress in a Film (Zoe Saldaña), Best Supporting Actor in a Film (Stephen Lang) and Best Younger Performer in a Film (Jack Champion), along with directing and writing nominations for Cameron and his screenwriting partners Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver.
Christopher Nolan’s biopicOppenheimer, featuring his signature storytelling style and meticulous attention to detail, earned an impressive 11 nominations including Best Thriller Film, Best Actor in a Film (Cillian Murphy), Best Supporting Actor in a Film (Robert Downey, Jr.), Best Supporting Actress in a Film (Emily Blunt) with Christopher Nolan’s noms for Best Direction and Best Film Screenwriting.
Paramount+ continues to dominate with its iconic and enduring franchise,Star Trek,asStar Trek: Picardreceives an impressive seven nominations, whileStar Trek: Strange New Worldsfollows closely behind with six nominations for Television Series. Lucasfilm’s/Disney+s’ latest addition to theStar Warsuniverse, the prequel seriesAndor, has received five nominations. Similarly, the highly anticipated adaptation of the beloved video game franchiseThe Last of Ushas also garnered five nominations.
You can view a complete list of nominees for the 51st Annual Saturn Awardshere.
Related:New York Film Critics Just Chose These Movies for the First Awards of the Season
What Are The Saturn Awards?
First created in 1973, the Saturn Awards were established by Donald A. Reed at a time when science fiction went largely unnoticed by the Hollywood system. Winners were originally presented with a Golden Scroll certificate, which was later changed in the late 1970s to a trophy representing the planet Saturn.
The 51st Annual Saturn Awards are presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films, and highlightthe best in genre entertainment, shining a spotlight on films and TV series that may otherwise gooverlooked by the Academy Awards, and the Golden Globes. Some of the more notable film categories include Best Science Fiction Film, Best Fantasy Film, and Best Horror Film. Cable TV and streaming are their own separate entities, unlike the Primetime Emmy Awards, where the two are lumped together, and usually find cable networks being overshadowed by big-budget streaming productions.
Special awards have included The Life Career Award, Special Recognition Award, and the George Pal Memorial Award, named to honor the Hungarian animator and film producer associated with the science fiction and fantasy genres. This year’s Special Awards will be announced in the coming weeks, along with the names of presenters and the host for the 2024 award ceremony.
The 51st Annual Saturn Awards will be broadcast on June 28, 2025, from the LA Marriott Burbank Airport Hotel, and you can watch the ceremony in its entirety on the streaming platform ElectricNOW.
